Proposal for a New CSULB Minor in International Business
1. Program Type
 State-Support
 New Program
The proposed Minor in International Business will utilize existing facilities and faculty.
Therefore, the only additional financial support will be the state funding for additional student
enrollment.
2. Program Identification
a. Campus: California State University, Long Beach
b. Full and exact degree designation and title: Minor in International Business
c. Term and academic year of intended implementation: Fall 2013
d. Name of the departments, division, or other unit of the campus that would offer the proposed
minor. Please identify the unit that will have primary responsibility: CBA International Business
Program.
e. Name, title, and rank of the individual(s) primarily responsible for drafting the proposed minor:
Dr. Terrence H. Witkowski, Professor of Marketing and Director of International Business
Program.
f.
Statement from the appropriate campus administrative authority that the addition of this program
supports the campus mission and will not impede the successful operation and growth of existing
academic programs.
Please see attached letter of support from CBA Dean Michael Solt.
g. Any other campus approval documents that may apply (e.g. curriculum committee approvals).
See attached minutes from CBA Undergraduate Programs Committee.
3. Program Overview and Rationale
a. Rationale, including a brief description of the program, its purpose and strengths, fit with
institutional mission, and a justification for offering the program at this time. The rationale
may explain the relationship among the program philosophy, design, target population, and
any distinctive pedagogical methods
With economic globalization and increasing social connectedness through the Internet and
mobile devices, most people in today’s world are impacted by international business. As workers
they produce for global markets and compete with labor worldwide. As consumers they purchase
foods and other products grown, made, or assembled abroad. To be fully engaged citizens they
need to know how international business affects and is affected by their country’s rankings on
economic and social indicators in comparison with other nations. Thus, understanding the
fundamentals of international business becomes increasingly important in being an educated
person.
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This minor degree is offered by the College of Business Administration and is designed to give
non-business majors a basic overview of international business with an emphasis on either
international management or international marketing. The capstone courses provide
international experience through either a CBA short-term study abroad or through an
international business internship. Thus, an additional purpose of the minor is to give nonbusiness majors knowledge, skills, and experience that may be of use in the job market.
This minor is very appropriate for undergraduate students in CLA majoring in a foreign
language, Economics, Journalism, and International Studies, but is open to other majors, such as
bachelor’s degree students in the College of Engineering.
b. Proposed catalog description, including program description, degree requirements, and admission
requirements.
Minor in International Business
The Minor in International Business is designed to provide students with international business
skills and cultural knowledge, which can be an advantage for job seeking and career building, as
well as a source of personal enrichment. Students accepted for admission must have at least a
2.0 GPA with junior standing.
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The minor is comprised of six courses for a total of 18 units.
For Non-Business students only, CBA students are not eligible.
Students must take CBA 300; COMM 330; either the International Management track
(MGMT 300, MGMT 405, MGMT 406) or the International Marketing track (MKTG 300,
MKTG 480, MKTG 481); and one of two culminating experience courses (CBA 493 or CBA
494)
IS 301, which is required for all 400-level courses in CBA, is waived for minors.
4. Curriculum
a. Goals for the (1) program and (2) student learning outcomes. Program goals are very broad
statements about what the program is intended to achieve, including what kinds of graduates will
be produced. Student learning outcomes are more specific statements that are related to the
program goals but that more narrowly identify what students will know and be able to do upon
successful completion of the program.
Program Goals
This minor emphasizes student learning of international business practice and management, the
acquisition of cross-cultural communication skills, and direct experience overseas or through an
international internship. The perspective is largely managerial – most coursework takes the
point of view of the international company – but also includes critical analysis of the larger
societal consequences of international business practices around the world, especially in
emerging markets. Graduates with a minor in international business not only will become more
informed workers, consumers, and citizens of the world, but also will be better equipped to assess
and successfully compete in the job market.
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Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the program, students will be expected to:
1. Learn general international business concepts and develop deeper knowledge in the practices
of either international management or international marketing.
2. Understand how cultural, environmental, political, legal, labor, and competitive factors
affect the conduct of international business and how nations differ on important economic
and social indicators.
3. Be able to analyze how global companies have affected their home and host countries, the
natural environment, and the economic development of poor nations, and why they have met
resistance from governmental, labor, environmental, and anti-corporate forces
4. Know the relationship between culture and communication and the problems inherent in
intercultural communications.
5. Demonstrate that they can (a) communicate effectively among team members to develop a
team-prepared written project and (b) make a persuasive, effective oral and written
presentation of their project.
6. Gain direct international experience either through study abroad or through an international
business internship.
b. Plans for assessing program goals and student learning outcomes. Some planners find it helpful to
develop matrices in which student learning outcomes and required courses are mapped, indicating
where content related to the learning outcomes is introduced, reinforced, and practiced at an
advanced level in required courses.
Courses
CBA 300
COMM 330
MGMT 300, 405, 406
or
MKTG 300, 480, 481
CBA 493 or 494
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I
2
I
R
R
P
P
Learning Outcomes
3
4
5
I
I
R
R
I/R/P
P
P
P
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I/R/P
I = Introduced R = Reinforced P = Practiced
Assessment of student learning outcomes 1 - 4 will begin with a pre-test comprised of questions
taken from the introductory courses CBA 300 and COMM 330. The Director of the International
Business Program will administer this test. It will be administered again at the start of the
culminating experience course. Assessment of student learning outcome 5 will take place in
either MGMT 405 or 406 or in MKTG 480 or 481. Assessment of student learning outcome 6 will
be achieved through successful completion of the culminating experience course. Assessment
results will be used both to evaluate how courses in the program help to meet learning objectives
and to fine-tune the guidelines for the culminating experience course.
c. Total number of units required for the minor or certificate.
The minor requires 18 units.
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d. A list of all courses required for the minor or certificate, specifying catalog number, title, units of
credit, and prerequisites or co-requisites (ensuring that there are no “hidden” prerequisites that
would drive the total units required to graduate beyond the total reported in 4c above).
All courses must be completed with a grade of C or better. Please note that IS 301, which is
required for all 400-level courses in CBA, is waived for minors.
1. Foundation Courses
CBA 300: International Business (3 units)
COMM 330: Intercultural Communication (3 units)
(Prerequisites: GE Foundation requirements)
2. Tracks
a. International Management
MGMT 300: Principles of Management, MGMT 405: International and Comparative
Management, and MGMT 406: International Business Policy (3 units)
(Prerequisites: MGMT 300 for MGMT 405 and MGMT 406)
or
b. International Marketing
MKTG 300: Principles of Marketing (3 units), MKTG 480: International Marketing (3 units),
and MKTG 481: Marketing Management in Selected Markets (3 units) (Prerequisites: MKTG
300 for MKTG 480 and MKTG 481)
3. Culminating Experience Course
CBA 493: Business Internship (3 units) or CBA 494: Short-Term Study Abroad (3 units)
e. List of elective courses that can be used to satisfy requirements for the minor or certificate,
specifying catalog number, title, units of credit, and prerequisites or co-requisites. Include
proposed catalog descriptions of all new courses.
There are no elective courses in the Minor.
Note: With regard to Sections 4f and 4g, a proposed program should take advantage of courses
already offered in other departments when subject matter would have considerable overlapping
content.
f.
List of any new courses that are: (1) needed to initiate the program and (2) needed during the first
two years after implementation. Only include proposed catalog descriptions for new courses. For
graduate program proposals, identify whether each course is a graduate-level or undergraduatelevel offering.
No new courses will be needed to initiate the program or be necessary in subsequent years.
g. Attach a proposed course-offering plan for the first three years of program implementation,
indicating, where possible, likely faculty teaching assignments.
Multiple sections of CBA 300, COMM 330, MGMT 300, MKTG 300, and MKTG 480 are offered
every semester. Two sections of MGMT 405 are offered Fall semesters; two sections of MGMT
406 are offered Spring semesters; and one section of MKTG 481 is offered Fall semesters. One
section of CBA 493 is offered every semester and two different sections of CBA 494 (China,
Germany) are offered every Spring Semester.
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h. Admission criteria, including prerequisite coursework.
i.
Must be a current undergraduate student at CSULB with junior year standing (Note: CBA
Students are not eligible for this program)
Criteria for student continuation in the program.
C grades or better in all minor courses taken.
j.
Provision for meeting accreditation requirements, if applicable, and anticipated date of
accreditation request (including the WASC Substantive Change process).
N/A
5. Need for the Proposed Minor or Certificate Program
a. List of other California State University campuses currently offering or projecting the proposed
programs; list of neighboring institutions, public and private, currently offering the proposed
programs.
Among CSU campuses in Southern California, only Cal Poly Pomona has a minor in
international business. CSU San Bernardino, CSU Dominguez Hills, CSU Fullerton, CSU Los
Angeles, CSU Northridge, CSU San Marcos, San Diego State do not have an IB minor.
None of the following research and private universities have an International Business minor:
University of Southern California, Loyola Marymount, UC Irvine, Claremont Colleges,
University of San Diego, and Pepperdine.
b. Differences between the proposed program and programs listed in Section 5a above.
Cal Poly Pomona’s IB minor requires 24 units (six 4 unit courses on quarter system). It is open
to all majors, business and non-business majors. Students outside CBA may have to take
additional pre-requisite courses.
The proposed CSULB program is 18 semester units and is aimed exclusively at non-business
majors. Long Beach business students who would like further instruction in International
Business are encouraged to double-major.
c. List of other curricula currently offered by the campus that are closely related to the proposed
program.
None of the current or proposed CBA minors are closely related to the one proposed herein.
Outside of CBA, CLA offers minors in International Economics and International Studies. The
International Economics minor requires 24 units, but only nine of them are in international
subjects. This program does not focus on international environments and cross-cultural
communications as will the proposed CBA program. The International Studies minor is also 24
units. It focuses on development, culture, and political issues.
d. Community participation, if any, in the planning process. This may include prospective
employers of graduates.
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CBA 493: Business Internship, one of the two alternative capstone courses, will require the
involvement of local companies. They will need to provide our students with positions that are
related to international business.
e. Applicable workforce demand projections and other relevant data.
Finding employment projections is a challenge since the international component of business and
other occupations is not usually broken out in U.S. and California government labor statistics.
For example, the California Employment Development Department predicts that jobs as market
research analysts and marketing specialists will be one of the fastest growing occupations in
2010-2020 for entry with a bachelor’s degree. However, we do not know how many of these jobs
are likely tied to international business (http://www.calmis.ca.gov/file/occproj/cal$occnarr.pdf).
We do know that growth in world international trade of goods and services has exceeded overall
growth in world GDP for many years (WTO International Trade Statistics 2011). In addition,
exports were a record 13.8% of U.S. GDP in 2011, an increase from 12.7% in 2010 and the prior
record of 12.9% in 2008 (U.S. Export Fact Sheet, International Trade Administration 2012).
Assuming these trends continue, one would expect job growth to be robust in careers supporting
international trade, management, and marketing.
According to the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs Office of Career
Services (www.sipa.columbia.edu/ocs), the most important factor in an international business
career path – more than the knowledge of a foreign language, area studies, or international
experience – is experience within a particular industry. Firms normally hire local staff, so the
best opportunities tend to be with small companies just starting to enter the international
business arena or expanding to new locations. Small companies look for candidates with
management and marketing skills. Having industry experience along with language and cultural
fluency and an academic background in international business is an invaluable combination for
those looking to work in international business. Thus, the culminating experience courses
emphasize direct international experience.
f.
If the program was proposed to meet society’s need for the advancement of knowledge, please
specify the need and explain how the program meets that need.
The purpose of this program is only partly devoted to improving employment opportunities of
CSULB graduates. As stated in sections 3a and 4a above, knowledge of international business is
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necessary in making informed decisions as workers, consumers, and citizens. Workers need to
know the extent to which their jobs depend upon international business and may be threatened by
foreign labor. This enables them to assess whether management claims about such are accurate.
Consumers should understand how products are sourced, under what conditions and by whom,
and with what consequences for the natural environment and societal well-being. This way they
can make more informed purchasing decision. Citizens need to know how well their country
performs in providing a competitive environment for international business. Such knowledge
helps them become better-informed voters.
6. Student Demand
a. Compelling evidence of student interest in enrolling in the proposed program. Types of evidence
vary and may include national, statewide, and professional employment forecasts and surveys;
petitions; lists of related associate degree programs at feeder community colleges; reports from
community college transfer centers; and enrollments from feeder baccalaureate programs, for
example.
The International Business major, which currently has 275 undergraduates, enrolls a higher
percentage of international students and students born overseas than other majors in CBA.
Students with similar backgrounds majoring in fields outside CBA should also find the minor in
International Business a good opportunity.
Long-standing CBA minors have attracted respectable numbers of students. Marketing has 145
minors, Management 67, and Human Resources Management 59. We anticipate that the IB
minor should also be popular. At an April 14, 2012 meeting with admitted first-year students, a
number of attendees asked questions about International Business. If they come to Long Beach,
these students may not necessarily major in business, but may choose to minor in International
Business.
The student International Business Association typically has about 30 members, with perhaps 510 from outside CBA. The IBA President for 2012-2013 is a Psychology major.
b. Issues of access considered when planning this program.
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Course scheduling for students and qualified faculty
Multiple sections of CBA 300, COMM 330 and COMM 442, MGMT 300, MKTG 300, and MKTG
480 are offered every semester. Multiple sections of MGMT 405 are offered in the Fall Semester
and MGMT 406 in the Spring Semester. MKTG 481 is offered on a yearly basis.
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Student financial aid
The usual financial aid will be applicable. Students taking CBA 493: Business Internship for
their capstone experience may be able to earn a salary from their employers.
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Program funding for student scholarships
If the program is approved, we can work to include minors in the two IB scholarships that are
currently open only to IB majors – the Paul Franz International Business Scholarship and the
Port of Long Beach Scholarship (see attached descriptions).
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Student Recruitment
The CBA Center for Student Success now has an Outreach Coordinator who is actively engaged
in promoting programs offered by CBA.
c. Professional uses of the proposed program.
The proposed minor in International Business enhances employment opportunities. Most career
fields today have an international dimension. Career paths in International Business that are
facilitated by the minor include:
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International marketing management
Export/import agent or company sales representative
Buyer for a large retail establishment
International financial management (e.g. banking, foreign currency broker)
Global logistics management (port operations, shipping, freight forwarding, customs
brokerage)
Human resources management (e.g. multi-cultural counselor, relocation consultant,
translation/interpretation specialist)
International tourism and hospitality industry management
International business journalism
Government departments and agencies (e.g. U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Commerce)
International governance institutions (e.g. IMF, World Bank, WTO, UN)
International non-governmental organizations (e.g. relief and development groups, social
entrepreneurship foundations)
d. The expected number of students in the year of initiation and three years and five years thereafter.
The expected number of graduates in the year of initiation, and three years and five years
thereafter.
Year of initiation – up to 20 students
Three Years – 25-30 students
Five years – 30-35 students
7. Existing Support Resources for the Proposed Minor or Certificate Program
Note: Sections 7 and 8 should be prepared in consultation with the campus administrators
responsible for faculty staffing and instructional facilities allocation and planning. A statement from
the responsible administrator(s) should be attached to the proposal assuring that such consultation has
taken place.
a. Faculty who would teach in the program, indicating rank, appointment status, highest degree
earned, date and field of highest degree, professional experience, and affiliations with other
campus programs.
CBA courses in the minor are part of regular course offerings and many instructors in
International Business, Management, and Marketing are available to teach in the minor.
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The CLA course in the minor (COMM 330) is part of the regular course offerings, and many
instructors in Communications are available to teach in the minor.
b. Space and facilities that would be used in support of the proposed program.
Current facilities would be used:
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CBA and CLA Classrooms
CBA Computer classrooms
CBA Open Access Lab
c. A report provided by the campus Library, detailing resources available to support the program
(discussion of subject areas, volume counts, periodical holdings, etc. are appropriate).
Please see attached report from Sue Jackson.
d. Existing academic technology, equipment, and other specialized materials currently available.
The current academic technology is sufficient. No specialized equipment or materials needed.
8. Additional Support Resources Required
Note: If additional support resources will be needed to implement and maintain the program, a
statement by the responsible administrator(s) should be attached to the proposal assuring that such
resources will be provided.
a. Any special characteristics of the additional faculty or staff support positions needed to
implement the proposed program.
Existing faculty/staff and resources are sufficient to meet needs of the proposed program (see the
CBA Dean’s letter). No additional resources will be allocated to the minor.
b. The amount of additional lecture and/or laboratory space required to initiate and to sustain the
program over the next five years. Indicate any additional special facilities that will be required.
If the space is under construction, what is the projected occupancy date? If the space is planned,
indicate campus-wide priority of the facility, capital outlay program priority, and projected date
of occupancy.
No additional lecture or laboratory space is required. Existing classrooms, laboratory facilities,
and technology are sufficient to initiate and sustain program over next five years.
c. A report written in consultation with the campus librarian, indicating any additional library
resources needed. Indicate the commitment of the campus either to purchase or borrow through
interlibrary loan these additional resources.
Current library resources are considered sufficient. Additional resources, if needed, are readily
available through interlibrary loans.
d. Additional academic technology, equipment, or specialized materials that will be (1) needed to
implement the program and (2) needed during the first two years after initiation. Indicate the
source of funds and priority to secure these resource needs.
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Current technology, equipment, and databases are sufficient to implement and sustain program
over two years.
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